OPTIONAL COATING: Stir the white sugar and coarse sugar crystals together in a small bowl (optional, but gives the cookie a nice crunchy exterior and extra flavor!). Alternatively, just add 1/2 cup white granulated sugar to a bowl. Set aside.
WETINGREDIENTS: Melt the butter in a microwave-safe bowl. Let butter stand at room temperature for 5 minutes to cool back down. If the butter is hot, it will melt the sugars and cause greasy cookies. Use a spatula to scrape every bit of butter into a large bowl. Add in the white and brown sugar and stir with a wooden spoon until smooth and incorporated. Add in both eggs and vanilla extract. Stir until just combined and smooth. Add in the molasses and stir until combined.
DRY INGREDIENTS: Add in the baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, and nutmeg on top of the wet ingredients; mix to combine. Add the flour (See Note 1) on top. Mix until just combined taking care not to overmix the dough. Cover the dough tightly and chill for 30 minutes.
ROLL COOKIE DOUGH BALLS: Roll tall cylinders of dough. Each ball should be a full 2 tablespoons of dough (40 grams if you have a food scale). Roll the balls of dough generously into the white sugar/white sparkling sugar mixture. Cover and refrigerate the balls of dough for an additional 45 minutes.
BAKE: Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Place dough balls on a parchment or Silpat-lined sheet pan (we like the Silpat sheet best for these cookies), spread far apart (I only bake 6-8 cookies at a time since they spread a lot) and bake for 9-14 minutes. Watch carefully, being sure not to overbake. (We remove ours at 10-11 minutes.) Slightly under-baked Gingersnap Cookies are the best! Remove from the oven and if needed, press the edges of the cookie inwards with the back of a metal spatula. Let cookies stand on the cookie sheet for 4-5 minutes before removing them to a cooling rack.
STORAGE: Store cookies in an airtight container at room temperature. They're best enjoyed within 3-4 days. Freeze cookie dough as opposed to baked cookies (see next step).
FREEZINGDOUGH: Instead of freezing already-baked cookies, freeze the dough! Drop the cookie dough balls on a large sheet pan and freeze until solid. Once solid, transfer the frozen cookie dough balls to an airtight container or bag and freeze for up to 3 months. To bake: You can bake these cookies straight from the freezer. There is no need to thaw, but you may need to add a few extra minutes to the baking time. Bake until the edges are lightly browned, and the center is still soft.
Video
Notes
Note 1: If you press a measuring cup into a bag of flour and scoop, you will pack in way too much flour, resulting in the wrong texture of cookie. To accurately measure the flour, spoon the flour into the measuring cup until its overfilled. Then use the back of a table knife to level the measuring cup at the top. (Video visual here).